I have just returned from a trip in Denmark and when returning I visited Bottle Shop at the Öresundsbridge and bought 2 bottles of Glenfarclas 12 YO at 299 DKK each. Great price for 1 liter bottles. Finally at home and pouring myself a dram I spotted ..... a screwcap.

I never seen a quality single malt with screwcap. The whisky is very good but it doesn´t feel to great unscrewing and pouring.

Has anybody had similar experiences?
Is it a forthcoming trend (I think not and hope not)?

Hmmm your right Mr Fjeld.
This could be a single malt to father-in-law. He is more of a Canadian Club, Black Velvet sort of person. This could be the malt to lure him into the single malt way of the world.
Moah-ha-haa:insane:

Screwcaps are the wave of the future, or should be. There is no reason in the world that whisky ought to be stoppered with cork--in fact, it can only cause problems. The screwcaps only need to be sturdy enough for long-term use, and the customers only need to get over their irrational prejudices. (I'm working on it.)

It's stupid and non-logical, what with a cork being able to rot and all, but I just like corks. I fully grasp why a screwcap is better and I don't mind it being used but...heck. The sound of the cork plopping off when opening a bottle, the look of the cork and how you can already smell the whisky from it. They're all very small nice moments that make me like a cork, even though I shouldn't.

The only bottle I currently got with a screwcap is the Glenfiddich 12y. Oh and the Ballantine's Finest. Haven't seen a lot of single malts with screwcaps.

Screwtops are the way forward. Wine producers are gradually getting their act to gether so why not SMW. In fact, the industry should look at the whole packaging thing and make it greener. Is there an alternative to using glass? I feel a new thread coming on!

There is nothoing better than the sound of a cork top being pulled out of a whisky bottle. However, having said that the cork broke off my half full bottle or Ardbeg 10 Year Old last week, leaving half of it stuck in the bottle, which I had to remove with a sharp knife. Argh! Nightmare. Lucky that I was very near the end of some Highland Park 18 YO so could finish that off and swap the tops over!! Phew.

Crieftan wrote:Screwtops are the way forward. Wine producers are gradually getting their act to gether so why not SMW. In fact, the industry should look at the whole packaging thing and make it greener. Is there an alternative to using glass? I feel a new thread coming on!

Crieftan wrote:Screwtops are the way forward. Wine producers are gradually getting their act to gether so why not SMW. In fact, the industry should look at the whole packaging thing and make it greener. Is there an alternative to using glass? I feel a new thread coming on!

We had a wine masterclass with Matt Skinner on saturday. He talked for a bit about closures. The screw top bottle has eradicated the risk of Corked wine through the bacteria TCA. So we might see it in the Whisky industry.

Criefy I dont want my whisky in a plastic bottle. We are then in the realms of Cola and Fairy Liquid.

I have no problem with screwtops. Actually, I really don't like the lead and cork solution as the corks have a habit of disintegrating and the lead is a pain to open and it leaved a jagged edge that just asks to cut fingers.

I recall about ten years ago that Glen Moray came with a hard moulded plastic screwcap - not the flimsy metal affairs you normally see. This would obviously have looked better had it not been in Glen Moray blue, but it looked more permanent and reusable than the metal screwcaps.

Right now, I am trying to reduce the number of open bottles and I only have one screwcap - the G&M Glenburgie 1964. Very good it is too!

I guess it could be a long and serious debate if we should corner all aspects of each "bottle stopper". Personally, I prefer the original cork to all other alternatives.
Regarding screwcaps for wine I've read several alarming reports and studies that have shown that oxidation, reduction, bacteriological contamination and volatile acidity faults can often be found in screwcapped wines. (Maybe I will believe otherwise when I see famous Chateau's like Margaux, Latour or Beychevelle start using other alternatives than cork)

And, more importantly, you need to burn metal screwcaps in order to recycle the metal (scrap metal is melted in a furnace which causes the plastic to ignite, releasing dioxins)

Cork can be recycled without any global warming involved and is fully biodegradable. It reproduces on the trees where it grows and a tree can be harvested 12-15 times before it's no longer acceptable productive.

Above all, it is a material that is one hundred per cent natural, recyclable and biodegradable, three essential qualities in a more environmentally friendly and less polluted modern society.

And let's not forget that in Portugal alone, 12500 workers are dependent on this industry.

By the way, the Glenfarclas I have in my glass at the moment has a screwcap...and I miss the POP when I open the bottle

To be honest, I never noticed the pop the cork makes until I saw the fuss people make over it on these forums - for me, the moment a whisky is opened, it becomes a disposable, consumable commodity just like a tin of beans. All I want is for it to keep well. I think the chances are probably higher using a method other than cork.

In terms of recycling, perhaps a cork in itself is easily biodegradable. I'm not so sure it remains that way when you put the plastic end on it to make it a reusable cork. And the employment argument is, for me, irrelevant. Coal fired power stations in china employ a lot of people, but it doesn't make them any more acceptable.

les taylor wrote:For the average Chinese Coal powered power station worker. To him or her and the family they support. Their job is vital.

So what's your point Les? Should we all get our power from Chinese coal fired power stations to support that family?

It's good sometimes to look at things from another persons point of view. Living in the west is a lot easier than other places in the world.

I'm afraid I disagree with that viewpoint absolutely. Coal fired power stations in China are contributing catastrophically to lasting environmental damage, not to mention the systematic poisoning of people who work in them and live nearby. Saying, oh well, they keep people in employment is just intellectually lazy. If we have more privilege and opportuinity in the west then we might dedicate some of it to educating and assisting in alternative development in poorer parts of the world. But basing consumer choice purely on what keeps people in employment is at best idly romantic and at worst is plain dangerous. IMO, of course.

les taylor wrote:For the average Chinese Coal powered power station worker. To him or her and the family they support. Their job is vital.

So what's your point Les? Should we all get our power from Chinese coal fired power stations to support that family?

It's good sometimes to look at things from another persons point of view. Living in the west is a lot easier than other places in the world.

I'm afraid I disagree with that viewpoint absolutely. Coal fired power stations in China are contributing catastrophically to lasting environmental damage, not to mention the systematic poisoning of people who work in them and live nearby. Saying, oh well, they keep people in employment is just intellectually lazy. If we have more privilege and opportuinity in the west then we might dedicate some of it to educating and assisting in alternative development in poorer parts of the world. But basing consumer choice purely on what keeps people in employment is at best idly romantic and at worst is plain dangerous. IMO, of course.

Ardbeg311 wrote:I have no strong preference for either cork or screw cap. The issue for me is what will best keep my whisky from spoiling or evaporation over the long term.

I have noticed that the Screw cap keep evaporation at bay much better than cork as I have agood few screw caps in my collection.

If I'm planning to keep a bottle for a period and it has a screw cap I give it a little twist clock wise (i.e. closing it) to make sure it is tight. It is not uncommon for these to be a small bit lose from the bottling plant.

We discussed some time ago the point about screw or corks for what concerns evaporation so in the meantime
I've matured the idea they're both equal, what really is important are the general storage condition.
Without light, upright and in a well done wood armoir.(and possibly in an
environment where the t° is stable enough)
Those are in my opinion the best conditions.

Last edited by kildalton on Thu Jun 28, 2007 6:32 pm, edited 1 time in total.

les taylor wrote:For the average Chinese Coal powered power station worker. To him or her and the family they support. Their job is vital.

So what's your point Les? Should we all get our power from Chinese coal fired power stations to support that family?

It's good sometimes to look at things from another persons point of view. Living in the west is a lot easier than other places in the world.

I'm afraid I disagree with that viewpoint absolutely. Coal fired power stations in China are contributing catastrophically to lasting environmental damage, not to mention the systematic poisoning of people who work in them and live nearby. Saying, oh well, they keep people in employment is just intellectually lazy. If we have more privilege and opportuinity in the west then we might dedicate some of it to educating and assisting in alternative development in poorer parts of the world. But basing consumer choice purely on what keeps people in employment is at best idly romantic and at worst is plain dangerous. IMO, of course.

Well said Nick.

Can't really see the connection between the coal fired power plants in China and the non-dangerous environment in which the 12500 employees of Portugal's cork producing industry work...

I read that too, but I'm still a bit confused. I'm not the one to support the Chinese coal fired power plants in order to prevent unemployment but by keeping the cork we could save a lot of people from unemployment in Europe. And these people work in a non dangerous environment. Would that be a bad thing?
Why mix in the Chinese and powerplants in the discussion at all?

I read that too, but I'm still a bit confused. I'm not the one to support the Chinese coal fired power plants in order to prevent unemployment but by keeping the cork we could save a lot of people from unemployment in Europe. And these people work in a non dangerous environment. Would that be a bad thing?Why mix in the Chinese and powerplants in the discussion at all?

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